A Re-Examination of Racioethnic Imbalance of IS Doctorates: Changing the Face of the IS Classroom

Abstract

There is an extremely low percentage of minority faculty in the IS field. This global trend is highly conspicuous--a minority of blacks compared to a majority of white academics in England, a minority of Aborigines compared to a majority of white academics in Australia, a minority of blacks compared to a majority of white academics in Canada, and for the purpose of our study, a minority of Native American, Hispanic American, and African American academics compared to a majority of white academics in the United States. Between 1995-2000, not only do AACSB reports indicate a continuous decline in minority business doctorates, but the accreditation body reports that the IS discipline shows a significant under-representation of minority faculty. In this study, we argue that mentoring under-represented groups in the discipline offers the field a myriad of avenues to change the "face" of the classroom and reduce this gap. We examine the absence of racioethnicity and mentoring in the IS field and offer lessons learned from The Ph.D. Project Model for engendering change and mentoring within the IS community. Using data from a six-year period, we discuss diversity issues, lessons learned, and recommendations from mentoring a group of under-represented IS doctoral students.

IT Education and Workforce Participation: A New Era for Women in Kenya?

“…We have held ICT-related positions in both industry and academia. Based on the challenges we face as members of a profession in which we are woefully under represented (Payton, White and Mbarika, 2005), we share in the experience that comes from being an outsider, an Other. We have firsthand experience of being seen as incompetent simply because of gender, race, and/or country of origin.…”

Relations Among Ethnicity, Gender, Beliefs, Attitudes, and Intention to Pursue a Career in Information Technology

“…Despite the importance of increasing the number of ethnic minorities and women in the IT profession, relatively little research has focused on the reasons that members of these groups are underrepresented in the field (cf. Hackett, Betz, Casas, & Rocha‐Singh, 1992; Lent, Brown, & Hackett, 1994; Lent et al., 2005; Payton, White, & Mbarika, 2005). Some research has examined the reasons that women are less likely to choose careers in IT (Gaudin, 1999; Melymuka, 1999; Nauta, Epperson, & Kahn, 1998; Schaefers, Epperson, & Nauta, 1997; von Hellens & Nielson, 2001), but relatively few studies have focused on why African Americans or other minorities are not motivated to enter these professions (Brown, Fulkerson, Vedder, & Ware, 1983; Hackett et al., 1992; Lent et al., 2005; Nielson, von Hellens, Greenhill, & Pringle, 1997; Pelham & Fretz, 1982).…”

IRSS Psychology Theory: Telling Experiences Among Underrepresented IS Doctorates

“…Mentoring offers one decisive way to shift from conceptualization of the IRSS theory to implementation, (action) to address the barriers cited from underrepresented students who can potentially serve as a "new face" of the IT classroom (Payton, White, & Mbarika, 2005). Such linkages offer support for our research questions.…”